WASHINGTON - Congressman Eliot Engel is co-sponsoring legislation to reauthorize a grants program providing bulletproof vests for police officers. The bill, would renew the program for another three years, and was introduced in conjunction with National Police Week, May 11-17.

Engel said that these vests have saved thousands of law enforcement officers since the introduction of modern bulletproof material. “The vests cannot protect those who do not have them,” he said. “The Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program was created in 1999 to provide state, local and tribal law enforcement officers with this protection by aiding the purchase of protective equipment.”

In Fiscal Year 2007, the grant program provided $28.6 million to state and local law enforcement agencies across America.  The funding provided 50 percent matching grants for the purchase of approximately 180,173 new bulletproof vests nationwide.

Under the program, each community selects vests from an approved list and is reimbursed for half the amount of the cost.

Engel said that in his 17 Congressional District, Yonkers bout 337 vests, Orangetown received 18 vests, Spring Valley got 10 vests and Suffern bought six vets, all of which were reimbursed by the federal government.

“Police officers risk their lives on a daily basis defending us. This is the least we can do to help them protect themselves,” he said.